


Contrariorum

by Squishiez



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Bonding, Fluff and Angst, Peridot's a nerd, Understanding, friendships, non-canon elements happen of course, takes place after gem drill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-07
Updated: 2017-12-07
Packaged: 2019-02-11 21:16:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12944106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Squishiez/pseuds/Squishiez
Summary: Peridot has an understanding of Garnet and Amethyst. She has an understanding of pearls. Though, she doesn't quite understand THE Pearl.





	Contrariorum

Peridot wasn't one who liked to get into conflict. It wasn't in her nature. Peridot's were technicians, not fighters. Even if she didn't follow homeworld's logic anymore, it was still _weird_ to not stay in her place. Though, watching the Crystal Gem's pearl made her a lot more aggravated than she would have liked.

The pearl had bluntly said she didn't belong to anyone. Peridot had been confused back then but she was starting to understand what she meant by that. Pearl had completely offed herself from homeworld's standards. She was something _new._ She wasn't weak, she wasn't a mindless, dancing, thing. She was Pearl and Pearl was tough. She was graceful like a Pearl but in a different way, she wasn't doing it for entertainment. She was being a graceful dancer for herself.

Everything Pearl did was for herself.

Peridot wanted that. She was tired of judging herself because of the horrible things homeworld expected from her.

One slip up and Yellow Diamond would have her shattered. Peridot's were meant to be brilliant when it came to technology and stuff like that but she was quite lacking when it came to friendships and freedom. She didn't understand how they worked.

"Peridot, is everything okay? You've been staring at me for a few minutes now and it's getting eerie." The Pearl spoke up, not even facing the green gem, she appeared to be cooking something for Steven, who was outside with his human friend, Connie? Peridot hummed, that was the girl's name. She focused back on Pearl, she appeared to making him some sort of noodles with cheese. The small gem didn't recall the name. Steven never mentioned it to her.

The taller gem stirred the noodles in the pot so that they wouldn't stick before turning to Peridot, a small, yet worried, smile plastered onto her lips.

Peridot didn't understand why the pale gem insisted on being nice to her after all that's happened. Same with everyone else.

She didn't understand any of the new concepts she was being taught. Friendship? Love? Earth? It wasn't what she was used to. Wires, metal, silence. The only noise she had back home was the sounds of construction or people yelling out orders, never small and happy chit chats.

"I don't understand you." Peridot didn't know much about interacting but surely that was rude. She forced herself to explain what she had meant. "I mean, I wish to understand you better. Kind of like how Garnet opened herself up to me. She let me understand but with you, I wish for you to do the same. I get Amethyst, at least enough, I sort of understand Garnet. I know nothing of you. You're completely different from homeworld's standards."

She paused.

"I'm not used to not knowing what's going on. I'm supposed to be smart but Earth makes me seem so stupid."

Pearl didn't know what to say. The green gem sitting on the couch not too far away seemed so hopeless. The two stared at each other, both completely unsure of what was going to happen next.

Pearl never spoke of her past, it was unnecessary information that she wasn't even allowed to talk about, but the other gem seemed so desperate to know.

"Is me not being a normal Pearl just not enough for you?" Pearl sighed, eyes focused on Peridot, taking her concentration away from the food she had been making for the boy outside on the beach. This conversation made her slightly uncomfortable, then again, anything about this topic did, but it also interested her. Peridot never seemed to have a filter when it came to conversation.

The pearl really wanted to know what this was going to lead to.. An argument? A friendship? Or maybe even nothing?

"I just want to understand what makes you not normal. Please, I want to be friends. I don't want to see you as a mere servant. You see yourself as more as that and I want to too."

Pearl had never see Peridot like this.

It was.. nice.

"Well.. I guess I can talk to you about it. Though, I must finish dinner first."

Pearl wasn't in a hurry to finish dinner for herself, she never ate. Food disgusted her. She tried it once when Greg brought over the greasiest pizza anyone could ever imagine. The taste was fine but the texture against her tongue and how it squished between her teeth had been disgusting and even worse how she had to make a digestive system, it was not very fun. She would never eat again. This food was for Steven and he had a busy day of training with Connie. It was six in the evening, he deserved a meal. Macaroni and cheese wasn't the best she could make but it was easy and quick. He would appreciate it either way.

Peridot nodded, grateful to get answers even if she had to wait a bit for them.

* * *

It had only took about five minutes after that. The tall gem stirred the noodles while it was boiling on the stove. Peridot watched from afar as she drained them and then added milk and cheese, making the noodles have a yellow cream covering it. Cheese? She then separated the food into two bowls and putting two forks in them. She must have made a plate for Connie too since there was more than enough.

_Normal pearls can't cook._

_Then again, no gems on homeworld could._

Pearl was more different than she thought. The green gem didn't think Amethyst and Garnet could cook, at least she never saw them do it. Lazuli neither. Though, the barn had no electricity yet (something Peridot planned on fixing) so there was no way Lapis could cook if she tried. Peridot doubted she could. She was isolated for almost 6,000 years. No way that girl knew how to cook.

"What do you want to know? I probably won't answer most of your questions though. It might not seem like it to you but I'm not fully adjusted with myself."

"Really? Out of all people, you seem quite happy with yourself."

The green gem raised an eyebrow, her eyes following the Pearl as she walked over to the couch, she appeared to walk on her toes sometimes, something Peridot had never noticed until that moment. There was a lot of things that Pearl did that Peridot never noticed. The pearl had such a sophisticated aura around her. She came off as intelligent and witty.

Peridot felt as if her intelligence was intimidated in her presence.

The tall and lanky Pearl sat down, a small smile graced her lips and her eyes were gently shut as if she was thinking something over.

"I'm happy with what I have now, you're right but even I can't always let go of the past. There is still stuff that haunts me, even now, 5,750 years after the war."

There was a sadness in her voice despite the smile on her face. Peridot knew pearls' role. They were servants, crafted gems that were made only to please their master, they weren't made to be happy gems. There were exceptions where their owners allowed them little freedom, allowed them to have happiness, or a little personality. Though, Pearl was fancy. Her owner was definitely high up, a gem like that had power and would never let their Pearl have any freedom. The technician wondered how Pearl's life was on homeworld. Probably scarring.

It wasn't a surprise that Pearl couldn't let go of the past. It was too impossible to forget such trauma. It had cut deep wounds into her heart. Well, if gems had hearts. It did damage to her psyche, if Peridot was more realistic.

"You've done quite well for yourself for being a pearl."

"I can't tell if that's a complement or an insult." Pearl said blankly, her face scrunched up a bit, as if she was disgusted.

"I meant it as a complement. My complements can be.. not so complementary." Peridot chuckled.

Pearl did too but not for the same reason.

"That's not what that word means. You really need help with your human language! Maybe I could teach you."

"That ridiculous. A pearl teaching a peridot? It's unheard of!"

"In homeworld's standards, it's ridiculous. We're on Earth now. It's different. Here I'm not the most graceful and you aren't the smartest."

Peridot looked bewildered. How could anything be more graceful than a Pearl or smarter than a Peridot? It was impossible. Surely, Pearl was wrong. She had been wrong before. She was wrong lots of times. She could most definitely be incorrect once again.

"I am most certainly the smartest in my field, and there is no way a measly human can dance better than a pearl, dancing is your purpose."

Pearl's calm demeanor broke instantly. Her shoulders didn't seem relaxed anymore, her eyes had anger clear in them but she didn't pursue the route Peridot thought she would take. She didn't scream in anger.

She just took a deep breath.

"You mean was." Her voice was a little higher than a mumble, just loud enough for the green gem to hear. Pearl knew Peridot was trying to understand but maybe Pearl wasn't ready to confront everything. She felt as if Peridot was ripping out strands of her self-esteem, strands of everything she covered up.

It was odd. Nothing before the green gem made her question who she was. When she was against them, Pearl made the biggest mistake with Garnet and now that they were on the same side, Pearl still couldn't take grasp of the self control she once had. She chuckled mentally, _What would Rose think of her now?_

She bit her lip, this wasn't about Rose, this wasn't about Peridot either, this was about herself.

"Oh, sorry.. This is what I meant about understanding you.. I don't get it."

Peridot adjusted her visors that were slowly starting to trail down her nose as she spoke those words. They both could feel tension. They didn't what type of tension. It could have been a positive or a negative tension, neither knew. It was just there, it felt as if it was swarming around them, making the atmosphere around them thick and bulky.

The two were silent for a few seconds before Pearl was able to come back to her calmer demeanor.

"Please, like I said before, I get Steven, Amethyst, and Garnet. Lapis is not quite happy with me, you're the only one left and has been the most hardest for me to comprehend."

"That should be enough. The fact that you have to comprehend the things I do should mean something to you. Has a pearl ever made you think like this before?"

Peridot shook her head.

"Exactly."

* * *

Pearl had sat up after that, leaving Peridot with her own thoughts. Pearl was smart. Pearl was leaving her to figure it herself now that she had actually had small chat about the subject. Though, there wasn't much to go on. She just wanted a logical explanation, like Percy and Pierre! Garnet had given a perfect response. Why did pearls have to be so dense?

Peridot shook her head and sighed.

Maybe it was herself who was being dense. She didn't know, she just wanted to get along with everyone. She wanted to be friends now because befriending Lapis was going to be hell. Get past the other gems first because making friends with Lapis would need all of her attention. Though, Pearl was being difficult. Well, not really, Peridot just never understood the taller gem's way of thinking.

_That should be enough. The fact that you have to comprehend the things I do should mean something to you. Has a pearl ever made you think like this before?_

No, of course not. Peridot hadn't been around many pearls, she never had her own. She only saw about three pearls in her whole existence, not counting Pearl. There was Yellow Diamond's pearl, her commander's pearl, and a lucky Peridot who won one in a raffle about 700 years ago. Even still, none of them had a thought process like the renegade.

The concept of a being like her didn't quite exist to Peridot yet.

Pearl was strange.

* * *

"No, the wire goes in the blue socket, not the gray one."

"I think I know what I'm doing. I have been doing this for thousands of years, I was made to do this." The green gem responded nasally to the Pearl next to her as they were desperately trying to build a new ship.

Pearl wasn't able to do it on her own but with Peridot's knowledge about current homeworld technology and Pearl's experiences with learning how to salvage to survive, the taller female believed they could do it, together. Though, Peridot was different. She didn't take any advice Pearl gave her. Not a single word of it.

So, when the machine started smoking where Peridot put the wire, it was no surprise to Pearl. She had been expecting it.

"I told you! Why can't you just listen to me!?" Pearl shouted, aggravated at the situation, If Peridot took her advice, they could have been been done with the ship in less than three days but with all of the stalls Peridot was causing, they probably wouldn't be done for a whole week, maybe two if Peridot continued on this path of stubbornness.

Peridot shook her head, holding her face in her hands as she shook her head in annoyance.

She couldn't comprehend how a PEARL knew what to do and she didn't. It didn't make sense. Pearls were mindless, thoughtless, they shouldn't know this! They definitely shouldn't know more than a Peridot.

"Because you are lower than me!"

"Says who!?" Pearl cried.

Peridot's eyes widened at that.

"The Diamonds.." She whispered. Her eyes tearing up at a realization.

She had told herself she was a Crystal Gem, her loyalty to the diamonds was completely distinguished. Peridot refused to have any sort of connection with he diamonds anymore except if it came to fighting them beside the rest of the Crystal Gems.

Though, here she was stereotyping her comrade because of something the diamonds had taught her. Garnet had always been telling her that all gems should be equal but Yellow Diamond's teaching about Pearls not being real gems had blurred her judgement. She felt her hands shake. She hated her behavior. She began to hate herself. Was she really worthy of being a crystal gem? Nothing made her more capable than Pearl besides the intelligent gem's old beliefs.

She was in the wrong.

"Listen, Pearl."

"Is that an order or a request?"

"An order but not because your a pearl but because I really need you to know this."

"Continue then."

Pearl sighed after her own response. Clearly, calming down. Though, her eyes were starting to gloss up, as if ready to burst out crying. Peridot never realized how much her treatment to the woman must have affected her. This seemed to be a touchy subject for her.

"I'm sorry. I-I'm still learning. I'm going to be stubborn for a while, I'm not always going to be fair with you. But I'm trying. I'm going to try harder." She paused to lick her lips that suddenly seemed beyond dry. "I hope you accept my request of forgiveness."

The pearl raised her hand, a blank expression on her face and Peridot flinched, ready to be hit but a splitting pain across her face never happened, instead a sudden weight was added to her head as Pearl patted the small gem's head as a small smile appeared on her lower face.

Peridot's eyes widened once again as she seen Pearl begin to cry.

"Thank you, Peridot. Trying is good enough. Let's start over."

"Start over.."

Peridot liked the sound of that.


End file.
